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Every organiser wants their event to be memorable. But how do you achieve that? No.4 Hamilton Place has staged many conferences so we thought we would share the secrets of the ones that have worked best.

Venue

Choosing the right venue is of paramount importance. It’s going to be a large part of what forms your guests’ first impression of your event, so it needs to be somewhere really special. When you go on a site visit for the first time, think about how you feel walking up to the venue, going in, walking round, taking in the views. This is your chance to share the experience of your soon-to-be guests, so take it all in. Our Argyll Room is full of Edwardian elegance and the Terrace has beautiful views over Hyde Park or the Bill Boeing Room is a modern room with AV built in. Need we say more?!

Bill Boeing Room

Branding

Getting people to talk about your event after it has happened is all very well, but if they don’t remember who was hosting it, you aren’t going to reap all the benefits of your hard work. Make sure you use all the branding opportunities on offer. Ask your venue what they can provide, what other companies have done and how they did it. Everything from simple pop-up banners and branding on a lectern, to using 3D technology to enhance the customer experience.

State-of-the-art AV equipment

These days, delegates expect high end projectors, high speed WiFi, video, live streaming, Tweets walls and no technical hiccups. Make sure your conference doesn’t stand out for the wrong reasons and get the AV side of things perfect. It’s also worth asking about in-house AV technicians, they will know the equipment and what works well at the venue. Let someone who knows a VGA from an HDMI connection take away any stress that otherwise might fall on your shoulders.

Content

‘Content is King’ You need to be 100% sure your speakers are the best in the business and their topics are the ones your delegates want to hear about. It’s worth remembering that interactive sessions boost engagement and learning and diverse subject matter will keep attendees interested. Don’t be afraid to take the occasional risk with your programme. If the gamble pays off, you’re sure to have created an event people will be talking about for months to come.

Content is King

Food and drink

Choosing the right food and drink for your conference will immediately put your attendees in a good mood and create a receptive environment in which to deliver your content. Keep in mind the sorts of food that can be eaten with one hand (i.e. canapés or bowls) or organise a sit down meal if more appropriate. Keep meals light and healthy to avoid mid-afternoon slumps at all day events and never underestimate the effect of decent coffee on a room full of tired delegates. Foodbydish have all the answers, for any event – find out more

Tasty Canapes

Special touches

If you’ve followed our advice so far your event will be fabulous, but now you need to think about taking things to the next level. There are lots ways to create a truly memorable event. Some examples include: thoughtful networking introductions, personalised gift bags, themed table decorations, meditation breakout spaces, re-energising outdoor team games… the list really is endless and these clever special touches needn’t cost you a penny. Get your team involved in a brainstorming session, put yourselves in your delegates’ shoes and think creatively about how you could go the extra mile for your guests, without blowing the budget.

Staff

Working with venue staff who understand your vision is hugely important to the success of your event. It’s also imperative that the waiting staff are everything you would expect from a top class restaurant. Give some thought to the first people your guests will meet as they arrive at your event as this will set the tone for their entire event experience.

Our Bill Boeing Room has a staged area complete with a large screen and two HD plazma screens which are perfect to display your company’s branding as well as presentations throughout the conference. It is kitted out with all the latest AV equipment, including a newly fitted projector, and has its own technician so you can be sure everything runs smoothly. Our in-house caterer, foodbydish, produce delicious dishes whatever the occasion or budget. They can also create bespoke menus to fit in with the theme of your event and we can guarantee you’d be proud to have their waiting staff serve your guests.